Chapter 367: Playing with Fire

368. Chapter 367: Playing with Fire

As soon as they left, only the local Gu Kings of the Yan Ting Empire remained here.

The group of Gu Kings sighed heavily, looking at each other with bitter expressions on their faces.

"Well! It seems this operation to encircle and suppress Duan Tianwu has failed; let's all return to our own homes and find our own mothers," a Gu King in the crowd sighed.

"No wonder he was the Qi Tian Lao Zu who once blood-washed the entire Evil Path; even after being severely injured by the Evil-Dispelling Divine Thunder, he could still possess such terrifying combat power and successfully escape."

"If he were in his peak condition, I'm afraid none of us in this group would be enough for him to kill; what then if he recovers his Gu King Peak strength?" a Gu King in the crowd said with a bitter smile, revealing deep fear.

"Is everyone alright? Are there any casualties?"

Seeing that all danger had completely vanished here, Long Xuan finally walked out from behind, preparing to fulfill his duties as the Team Doctor; he was a member of this Demon Slaying Mission and could not simply do nothing.

Qin Manyuan looked at him and said, "Duan Tianwu acted ruthlessly, every strike aiming at vital points without holding back; those injured by him have basically all died."

"He only showed mercy to that Old Abbot; whether it was intentional or unintentional is unknown, but the Old Abbot was injured by his Heart-Questioning Finger."

"The Heart-Questioning Finger is one of the heaven-defying unique supreme arts created by Duan Tianwu back then; those struck by it will not die immediately, but it will stir up the Heart Demons within their hearts."

"For those struck by the Heart-Questioning Finger, those who successfully overcome their Heart Demons will live, while those who cannot will die; the wounds left by the Heart-Questioning Finger are something you cannot heal; they must rely on themselves."

Qin Manyuan turned his gaze toward the Old Abbot, who was already sitting on the ground.

At this moment, his Heart Demon had already erupted; beads of sweat the size of beans seeped from his forehead as he sat cross-legged on the ground, struggling bitterly, his expression appearing very painful.

Qin Manyuan revealed a cold smile and said with amusement, "Unexpected, truly unexpected; only those who have committed guilty deeds possess Heart Demons, yet I never expected this highly virtuous and respected Old Abbot to have a Heart Demon."

"Moreover, his Heart Demon seems quite significant; what guilty deed did he exactly commit? Could it be that he broke the precept against lust? Hehe, just kidding, just kidding."

"Since this matter has concluded and the Law Enforcers of Gu Emperor City have already departed, shall we also disperse?"

Sighs arose once again from the crowd, and the numerous Gu Kings finally slowly scattered.

Even that Old Abbot, whose Heart Demon had relapsed, was anxiously carried away by a group of monks; it was unknown whether he could survive this tribulation.

In the end, Long Xuan did not dare to use the ability of the Heavenly Mechanism Eye to search for Duan Tianwu's figure and left uninterestingly.

Finally, only Qin Manyuan remained standing in place; it was unknown why he had sent away all the Qin Clan Gu Kings yet did not leave himself.

"Imperial Uncle! It was you who secretly attacked Law Enforcer Lei from behind and killed him instantly, wasn't it? Otherwise, with Law Enforcer Lei's combat power, even if he could not win, he absolutely could not have been instantly killed by a severely injured Duan Tianwu."

At this moment, a female voice suddenly came from behind Qin Manyuan, causing his body to stiffen.

He slowly turned his head to look at the woman who bore a striking resemblance to Qin Yuyou and said helplessly, "Why would you suspect me? Who does not know that our Qin Clan shares a deep hatred and great enmity with Duan Tianwu? How could I kill Lei Wan to save him?"

"It is true that Lei Wan died from being pierced through the back of his heart, but it is also possible that Duan Tianwu ran here and hid, waiting for Lei Wan to arrive here unaware before secretly attacking and killing him."

"It is also possible that Duan Tianwu's speed was too fast, allowing him to directly flash behind him."

"You must know that what killed him was the Evil-Dispelling Sword; this is ironclad proof that Duan Tianwu killed him!" Qin Manyuan said with a condensed voice.

The Female Gu King shook her head and said, "Your set of excuses may deceive everyone else, but it cannot deceive me; when the Evil-Dispelling Sword was in my hands, fearing that Duan Tianwu might escape under our encirclement and suppression, I made some modifications to the Evil-Dispelling Sword to facilitate tracking him."

"I can precisely know the location of the Evil-Dispelling Sword, and right now, that Evil-Dispelling Sword is on your person."

"It was you who killed Lei Wan!" the Female Gu King stared dead at him, accusing sharply.

Hearing this, Qin Manyuan finally fell silent, slowly revealing a bitter smile; he finally stopped forcing a facade and sighed bitterly, "I never expected my flawless plan to be seen through by you; you are truly meticulous to have made modifications to the Evil-Dispelling Sword."

"Why did you want to save Duan Tianwu? Did not our Qin Clan mobilize so many people this time precisely to completely slay him?" the Female Gu King asked again with an unpleasant expression.

Qin Manyuan shook his head and sighed, "It is true that we share a life-and-death great enmity with Duan Tianwu, but you must remember that in this world, there are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests."

"It is true that our mission this time was to kill Duan Tianwu at all costs, but after hearing the Old Abbot's words in the Secret Chamber of the Great Buddha Temple, I changed my mind."

"Duan Tianwu cannot die yet; at least within one year, he absolutely cannot die!"

"Why?" the Female Gu King hurriedly asked.

Qin Manyuan looked at her solemnly and said seriously, "Because he is a person of the Yan Ting Empire."

"The Alchemy Competition is about to begin, and our Yan Ting Empire is wagering half of our National Fortune against the Huiyue Empire."

"Whichever empire's Alchemist ranks highest in the Alchemy Competition can plunder half of the other party's National Fortune."

"Facing this old rival, our Yan Ting Empire does not have a guarantee of victory, so I plan to let Duan Tianwu participate."

"Do not look at the fact that the Alchemy Competition limits participants to under fifty years of age; the Tower of Sealing Demons can freeze the Lifespan of the sealed; according to the Abbot's words, Duan Tianwu's current shell is absolutely under fifty years old."

"This is our opportunity to cheat!"

Qin Manyuan clenched his fist, his eyes revealing a mad color, and said excitedly, "As Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power grows increasingly thin, very few people can achieve the rank of Fourth Grade Alchemist before the age of fifty."

"Yet Duan Tianwu is a heaven-endowed genius; he is the only Alchemy genius within ten thousand years to achieve the rank of Fourth Grade Alchemist before the age of fifty."

"In the previous Western Regions Alchemy Competition, it was precisely because Duan Tianwu was the only Fourth Grade Alchemist in the entire arena that he crushed all participants, easily claiming the championship of the Western Regions Alchemy Competition, and thus became famous throughout the world."

"Hehe, in this current era, apart from him, no one can become a Fourth Grade Alchemist before the age of fifty."

"All participants in this year's Alchemy Competition will be Third Grade Alchemists; with him, a Fourth Grade Alchemist, participating in this Alchemy Competition, he will be sufficient to sweep everything."

"With him here, our wager with the Huiyue Empire is certain to win, and no accidents will occur," Qin Manyuan said, revealing blazing eyes and curling his lips into a sinister smile.

Hearing this, the Female Gu King's face immediately changed drastically, and she exclaimed in shock, "You are playing with fire! The person you are saving practices Forbidden Gu, and the one you killed is a Law Enforcer of Gu Emperor City; do you know what great disaster this matter will bring to our Tribe once it is exposed?"

Qin Manyuan immediately turned his head to look at her, his expression ferocious and his emotions extremely agitated, and said, "Then do you know what the Yan Ting Empire will face if we lose in this wager?"

"Do you know what it means once an empire loses half of its National Fortune?"

"Once an empire loses half of its National Fortune, it is very likely to face national destruction; what consequence could be greater than the consequence of national destruction?"

"When weighing two harms, one chooses the lighter; as long as this matter is successfully concealed, we will have nothing to worry about; as long as we win half of the Huiyue Empire's National Fortune, countless Heavenly Prides will emerge in the Yan Ting Empire in the future, and our nation will prosper for at least a thousand years."

Qin Manyuan gazed into the distance, clenched his fists, and revealed an ambitious expression...

... (End of Chapter)